Thanks For Listening

The Godless Spellchecker Podcast was downloaded over 11,100 times this March.  That’s far exceeded my wildest expectations from when I started out in November 2013.  Thank you!

Podcasting, especially as a first time amateur, isn’t something you become an expert at over night, but I feel I’m learning the ropes and finding my feet.  I’m really confident that there will be lots of great content and guests to look forward to for the remainder of 2014.  It’s really only just begun in that respect.

Noticeable improvements to sound and production quality have already been made, and I’m confident throughout 2014 the #GSpodcast will grow and become an even better listen.

As well as continuing to reach out to known & notable speakers within the atheist/secular community for guests, I will also continue to seek out interesting voices that may be unheard of.  If you feel you have something to say in this respect, please let me know here.

I’m also looking into the logistics of taking the show on the road in order to cover exclusive content from events, speaking engagements, debates and conventions.

I very much want this to be a listener’s show too.  An interactive experience for people with shared interests.  I’ll be placing a greater emphasis on audience interaction in the coming months, making the show an outlet for anyone with something interesting or entertaining to contribute.

This is currently a one man operation.  In the limited time outside of my regular 40 hours a week day job, I’m scheming, scheduling guests, recording, editing and producing.  It’s definitely become a second ‘job’, but it’s a huge privilege to get to speak to and learn from so many interesting people.

The show lives or dies on the support of the listener however.  If you’ve enjoyed the show, there are a number of things you can do to support and promote it:

1. You can contribute to the hosting/production costs by making a donation (any value) here.
2. You can subscribe to, rate & review the show in iTunes.  This helps the show climb up the charts.  This will not only increase the audience, but give the show the clout to attract prominent figures as guests in the future.
3. You can add the show to your Stitcher playlist, review and rate it.
4. Share the show on social media.

The Godless Spellchecker Podcast is available on iTunes, Stitcher and direct download here.

Thanks for listening,

GS

 

 

 

 

 

Ep#13 – When Knowledge Conquered Fear – Cosmos

Another Cosmos Special Edition! We welcome Scientia to the #GSPodcast and applaud the return of Episode 11’s Brian.  We’ll be tackling the big talking points from Ep.3 of Cosmos: ‘When Knowledge Conquered Fear’.  Newton, comets and where the hell can I grab myself a copy of ‘The History of Fish?’
Guests:
@Bemopolis
@ScientiaPercept

Also available on Stitcher and iTunes.

Donate to the show here.

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Ep#12 – Some Of The Things That Molecules Do – Cosmos

Laura and Daniel drop in on the #GSPodcast to help me recap, review and discuss Cosmos Episode 2: ‘Some Of The Things That Molecules Do’.  We delve into artificial selection, natural selection, DNA, irreducible complexity and creationist nonsense. Also, does anyone know whether Polar bears cover their eyes?
Guests: @LauraLeeBiology & @lepage_d. Also available on Stitcher and iTunes.

Donate to the show here.

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Ep#11 – Cosmos Special Edition – Standing Up In The Milky Way

Fellow science boffins @CourtneyLynn26, @Bemopolis (Brian) and @adam_cann join me on the #GSPodcast to discuss the standout topics from the first episode of the new Cosmos series. Donate to the show: www.gspellchecker.com

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Ep#10 – Terry Sanderson, President Of The NSS – Secularism

President of The National Secular Society (NSS), Terry Sanderson joins me on the #GSPodcast to discuss faith schools, ritual slaughter, religious privilege and all things secular. Follow The NSS on Twitter: @NatSecSoc.

Also available on Stitcher and iTunes.

Donate to the show here.

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Podcast – Cosmos Edition – Voices Needed!

Specifics
Show Title: Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey
UK Airdate:  Sunday 16th March
Time: 7pm – 7.50pm GMT
Channel: National Geographic
Podcast recording time: Sundays 8.50pm GMT

March 16th marks the start of a new updated version of Carl Sagan’s classic TV series “Cosmos: A Personal Voyage”. The brilliant Neil deGrasse Tyson and the hilarious Seth MacFarlane will be on hosting/narrating duties, and it promises to be stimulating both visually, mentally, and I suspect, entertaining too.

To celebrate the occasion, and hopefully engage people in some beautiful, beautiful scientific discussion, I intend to record a companion Podcast episode an hour after the UK broadcast has ended. We would, as a group, talk through some of the points of interest from the current episode.  I shall then slave away in order to have it available to download within 24-48 hours.

This is where you come in.  Will you be watching Cosmos? Have you watched it in the US/Canada already? Do you have an interest in cosmology/physics?  Do you think you could lend a lively voice to a relaxed discussion concerning the contents of the show?

Ep#9 – Secular Parenting with @PhyllisCopeland & @GammaAtheist

A discussion on Secular parenting with @PhyllisCopeland & @GammaAtheist.  We talk about the challenges of raising your children in a secular way & deal with those tough questions.  This week on “Once Upon A Fallacy” is The Ad Hominem. Also available on Stitcher and iTunes.

Donate to the show here.

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Ep#8 – Chris Moos – Freedom Of Expression

A chat with Chris Moos about his well-publicised brush with religious intolerance at the LSE.  We also discuss freedom of expression, censorship, Jesus and Mo and the controversy surrounding Maajid Nawaz.

Guest: @ChrisMoos_ Also available on Stitcher and iTunes.

Donate to the show here.

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New Podcast For 2014 – Guests & Contributors Needed

Happy belated New Year! Firstly, a huge thanks to those that have listened to my Christmas Podcast ‘experiment’ and sent some kind words my way.  The amount of downloads and positive feedback has far surpassed my expectations.  Some rather unpleasant pro-sprout fanaticism aside, it’s been fun.

Podcasting was a learning curve but I plan to use my experiences to produce a better, bigger, more entertaining and engaging show for 2014. I’m hoping to release it fortnightly/monthly, blending humour, news, guides, debates and interesting guests.

Using new equipment & new techniques, I’m hoping there will also be a noticeable improvement in sound quality & production value.  I have set early February as a tentative date to kick off the new run of episodes, so if you haven’t already, please subscribe via iTunes, Stitcher or YouTube.

This is now where you wonderful primates come in*.

Do you have something to say that may be of interest to others? Click here to answer a few questions and be considered as a guest for the show.

Do you have an idea for a recurring feature that you would like to be a regular correspondent for? Perhaps you are involved in something that is ongoing, whereby you could check-in with frequent reports? Contact me and let me know.

Perhaps you’re musically inclined and have some songs, either sincere, or comedic that you wish to share? Contact me and let me know.

Do you have any suggestions or ideas for what you would like to hear from a heathen focused podcast? Perhaps you have some guest suggestions? Let me know in the comments section below.

If you enjoyed the Christmas Podcasts and would like to get behind a new regular show, you can help to support it in other ways too:

The current cost to me for providing these shows as free to download is £110/$180US per year.  By making a small donation (or massive – I’m not fussy) you can help to supplement these costs and make the hours spent planning, recording and editing more economically viable.

Click To Support This Podcast

You can also help by listening, reviewing, subscribing, rating and sharing my show via Stitcher, iTunes and YouTube.

A combination these actions enables the show to climb their respective charts, bypassing evangelical religious content and placing atheistic voices right in amongst the piety.  I doubt they will enjoy that.

I look forward to hearing from you.

GS

Team #GFGS raises £22,773.69 for charity in 2013

What a year!  Team Good for Good’s Sakes’ WaterAid fundraising finally came to an end on Christmas day, finishing on an astonishing £11,843.03, smashing our £11,000 target goal.

This also completely obliterated our previous £10,930.66 record for Red Nose Day earlier in the year.  This brings the total amount raised for charity by Team #GFGS in 2013 to an incredible £22,773.69.

This was achieved because a significant, but by no means huge, group of people decided that contributing to charitable causes was a worthy idea for its own sake, regardless of what you do or don’t believe about anything else. This was done without media, financial or corporate support of any kind.  That’s incredible, and I think everyone who played a part should be proud of themselves.

WaterAid is a fantastic organisation.  I need not waste your time explaining why access to clean water is such an imperative, so please visit them to see exactly how they will use the money to do good. From setting up sustainable water access in the poorest of places, to creating communities which are educated and trained in the skills required to maintain that infrastructure. Please consider choosing WaterAid should you be considering a charitable cause to fundraise for in the future.

I honestly didn’t think we could surpass our Red Nose Day efforts.  It’s such a pleasure and privilege to be continually surprised by the passion, intelligence, activism and good humour of those that engage with my Twitter feed.  Thank you.

A massive thank you to everyone that donated money and shared the fundraising page around. I’ve no doubt what we have achieved here together will help change lives for the better.  And why would we like to do that?  Because it’s a good thing to do.

I don’t really think about my Twitter shenanigans much further ahead than the present. This is due to understanding that my digital lifespan is also finite, with a limited shelf-life and therefore I don’t take it for granted that people will always be interested in what I have to say.  It’s for this reason that I am cautious about making plans for another charitable drive so soon, but if I’m still around in April and people are still interested I will consider setting up another cause for us to get our teeth into.  Up for the challenge?

Obviously, I understand the chances of reaching these heights again in 2014 are unlikely.  But I said that last time too.  And I’d be ecstatic to be wrong again.

Have a great New Year. Be Good

GS

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